Empire · 950–1865 · Australasia & Oceania
Tuʻi Tonga Empire
According to Tongan tradition, the line of sacred kings called Tuʻi Tonga began around 950 with ʻAhoʻeitu, son of the sky god Tangaloa and a mortal woman. From Tongatapu, the Tuʻi Tonga built a maritime chiefdom whose influence, through voyaging canoes, marriage alliances and tribute, extended at its height in the 12th and 13th centuries across Samoa, ʻUvea (Wallis), Futuna and parts of Fiji.
The royal centre at Muʻa has great stone-faced tombs called langi, and the Haʻamonga ʻa Maui trilithon is attributed to the king Tuʻitātui. After several Tuʻi Tonga were assassinated, around the 15th century they handed political power to a new line, the Tuʻi Haʻatakalaua, and later the Tuʻi Kanokupolu, keeping a sacred role. The title lapsed when Laufilitonga died in 1865, as George Tupou I unified Tonga as a modern kingdom.
- Years
- 950–1865
- Capital
- Toloa and Heketā, then Muʻa, all on Tongatapu
- Greatest extent
- 1200, about 23,000 km²
- Region
- Australasia & Oceania
Rough upper bound counting the land of Tonga, Samoa, ʻUvea, Futuna and Fiji; Tonga itself has about 750 km² of land, and its maritime influence spread far wider
Legacy
The Tuʻi Tonga tradition underpins the modern Kingdom of Tonga, the only Pacific island monarchy never formally colonised.
Rulers
- ʻAhoʻeitu c. 950 (legendary)
First Tuʻi Tonga, said to be the son of the god Tangaloa
- Tuʻitātui c. 12th century
Credited with building the Haʻamonga ʻa Maui trilithon
- Takalaua c. 15th century
Tuʻi Tonga whose assassination led to a division of power
- Kauʻulufonua I c. 15th century
Avenged his father and created the Tuʻi Haʻatakalaua line
- Laufilitonga 1827 – 1865
Last Tuʻi Tonga